Smyrna times. [volume] (Smyrna, Del.) 1854-1987, 1887-10-19
For the Smyrna Times.
Sermonie Notes.
BY REV. T. o. AYREs.

PIC TIC present or approaching evil,
and warm them in time that they may
escape impending ruin. "Cry aloud.
spare not, lift up thy voice like a
trumpet, and show my people their
transgressiOns, and the house of Jacob
their sins" is heavens high commission
to the preacher, and, eff the watch
man asleep be found He will hang the
Waterman on his round"
Our subject is strong drink, and the
Bible is our textbook and we purpose
to tell our readers what the Bible has
to say about it. 1t has a history and a
bad one that is linked to and blended
with all evil.
The Bible has not one good word to
say in favor of drunkenness.
Let us turn to the sacred word and
trace the crime-marked course of this
heaven denounced curse. Read Deu-
terOnomy 81 chapter, verses 90, 81. A
drunken son was to be stoned to death.
1t is we'll for our drunken young men
that they live so late in the worlds
history. The law of Moses would have
sent them out of life by the aid of a
stone shower bath.
After the evil had run a long time its
results were summed up and recorded
in Proverbs. See Proverbs % charter.
verses 81 to 80, 1.-THE drunkard shall
come to poverty. Who hath woe? Who
hath sorrow? Who hath contentious?
Who hath bablings? Who hath wounds
without cause? Who hath redness of
eyes?" Six strong questions and one
answer meets them all and that answer
is; " They that tarry long at the wine:
they that 60 to seek mixed wine"
And in full view of all the facts in the
case the inspired penman recorded his
solemn and weighty advice Look not
thou upon the wine when it is red.
when it giveth its color in the cup.
when it moyeth itself Alright. At last
it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth
like an adder" The testimony of all
ages is the same. ut clothes a man
with rags" And in rags they walk
through the low alleys and by-ways of
life. They are still known by the old
markes. Namely, "woes, sorrows.
contentious, babblings, wounds and
redness of eyes," what a long list of
the names of Smyrnas sons of all sta
tiOns high and low. could write
down men up town, men down town,
men in town, men out of town, men in
the professions, men leading in mercan-
tile and mechanical pursuits, young
men OF promise, old men of mark, all
of whom have gone down to poverty.
shame, sin and death all Stayed by rum
hell bowed, heaven cursed rum, and
while am writing these words there
are men in Smyrna who are engaged
IN the degraded and degrading bust
ness Of standing guard over few rum
bottles, waiting for the money that
ought to 60 to pay honest debts or buy
food and clothing for dependent fami-
lies. Watch them gentlemen, they
are dangerOus-and as you watch bot
ties and wait for customers, l suggest
that you do a little thinking along the
lines that couple yOU with then who
were your fOrerunners in the very
places where you now find yourselves.
l knew many of the men who were
there before you came to the fated
situation and well remember how mat
tiers began, progressed and ended in
their cases. am not trying to hurt but
save men. As matters stood over three
thousand years ago just so they stand
to-day. Habakkuk saw it in his dav
and spoke in the language of the text.
Let us continue to follow it from Moses
to Solomon to Habakkuk to Christ to
the Apostles and on down through all
after times to the present, and in all
stations high or low, the slime of the
biting serpent and singing adder
marks the pathway of suffering human
ity.
First Corinthians to 10, mo
drunkard shall inherit the Kingdom of
God" Mark the language inherit"
can't fall heir to it. Why nOtP Be-
cause he has no right to it. Then
drunkenness disinherits an heir of the
Kingdom of God and shuts men out of
heaven. Drunkenness then is crime;
so heinOus than it "shuts the gates of
mercy on mankind" Then let us stop
blubbering over our dead drunkards
and talking fool talk about their weak
ness and their having been good heart
ed and foes only to themselves"
They were foes to God and all man
kind. Let the drunkard know that he
must give up drunkenness or give up
all hope of heaven.
Later they turned the Lords Supper
into drunken feast and instead of eat
ing and drinking to their justification
they did it to their condemnation and
the translatOrs were only a little pre-
UiOus when they translated it damna-
tion," for such is the outcome of such
course if followed to the legitimate
end.
The monster crawled on through the
dark ages and grew and fattened on
the darkness. Many rattles have
grown upon his tail all of which he
shakes and rattles vigorously but few
head the warning.
Why does this evil tree continue to
bear such fruit-evil fruitP The an
swer is because ofits nature it is innate.
As well talk ofreforming a nest Of hor-
nets. 1t is just when it started. It
CLOTHES man with rags" it biteth
like a serpent and it stingeth like an
adder" It sOas hell horned it Is bound.
Read l. Corinthians 9, and 10 verses,
Know We not that the uRrighteous
shall not inherit the kingdom Of God ?
Be not deceived; neither fornicators,
nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor efFer-